An Indonesian court has dismissed a legal challenge by a 42-year-old Nigerian, Raheem Agbaje-Salami, who is on death row for drug peddling.
Indonesian president, Joko Widodo, had rejected clemency representations from Nigerian authorities.
Judge Hendro Puspito of the Administrative Court in East Jakarta said that the court had no jurisdiction over presidential decisions.
According to media report, Widodo remains tough on the death penalty amid intensive plea for clemency from Australia, France and Brazil.
Two other Nigerian drug traffickers are also scheduled to be executed within the month after requests for presidential clemency were rejected.
However, the federal government has cautioned Indonesia on the plan of the country to execute three Nigerians, who were arrested and convicted for drug-related offences.
The government summoned the Indonesian Ambassador to Nigeria, Harry Purwato, over the development as the Asian country has insisted that the Nigerians and others, who had also been convicted for drug trafficking, would be executed.
The permanent secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Amb. Danjuma Sheni, received the Ambassador of Indonesia to Nigeria, Harry Purwanto, at the Ministry in Abuja.
Sheni demanded that the prisoners should be allowed to serve out their sentences in Nigeria.
He said, “We had to summon you to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to appeal to you to talk to your government about the proposed execution of three Nigerians who are currently on death row in your country. As you know, your country and Nigeria has a robust and excellent relationship and we do not intend that anything should happen to our relationship.
“We are aware of the consequences of drug trafficking in your country but we still want to put on record that we want to appeal to you and to your president to temper justice with mercy.”
He also said, “We understand that the three Nigerians have gone through the judicial processes and their appeal to the president has been turned down. We also understand that one of them, Mr. Salami, has been moved to an Island and any time from now may be executed.
We want to appeal to you and through you to your governor that this sentence carried out on Mr Salami to be executed any time from now should be converted to life imprisonment.”
He, however urged that speedy treatment be made on the exchange of prisoners negotiations between the two countries so that Nigerian nationals who may be cut off there be given the opportunity to serve their sentences in Nigeria.
Some other imprisoned Nigerians not on death row but there for other alleged crimes, who are willing to serve their sentences in Nigeria may be beneficiaries of the exchange agreement if engaged to fulfillment.
Ambassador Purwanto, in response to the Perm secretary said the appeal message will be taken to Jakarta. He said that Indonesia attaches great Importance to its relations with Nigeria, however, death sentences in Indonesia is usually done in a credible, transparent and accountable way.
In his words, “In Indonesia, we still recognise the death sentences in criminal justices in areas such as terrorism and dealings with narcotics and others and have made it known that dealing in narcotics trafficking is risking ones life with the death penalty even before you come to Indonesia.”
He continued, “Executions are done with strict adherence to the process of law and we know that the cases have passed through the courts, the court of appeal and the supreme court so when clemency was requested to the president, it was turned down. The embassies in Indonesia are briefed fully from the very beginning on the detention process, the trials and the preparations for executions like the one we are facing now. After the legal processes are done and exhausted, clemency is denied.”
Amb Purwanto, however, said that the appeal will be noted and passed on to his government for consideration and he will correspond information between to the government of Nigeria and promised that the relations between both countries will continue for the better.
